News

Czech president says Turkey should be allowed to become full member of EU

The Czech president, Vaclav Klaus, says Turkey should be allowed to become a full member of the European Union. Speaking on a visit to the Turkish capital Ankara, Mr Klaus said it would be a mistake for Turkey to accept mere privileged partnership with the Union. The country began accession talks with the EU in October.

Environment ministry wants Germans to produce waste removal timetable within 24 hours

The Czech environment ministry has called on the German state of Saxony-Anhalt to provide within 24 hours a timetable for the removal of waste illegally imported into the Czech Republic. On Monday the Czech environment minister, Libor Ambrozek, said if the Germans did not remove waste from the town of Libceves by the end of this month, the Czech authorities would do so and send them the bill.

Firefighters were called out to deal with a blaze at a dump in Libceves at the weekend, the third fire there since February. Several cases of the illegal importing of German rubbish to the Czech Republic have been reported in recent months.

Police not to search for mothers who use "baby boxes"

The police will not search for women who make use of anonymous "baby boxes", a spokesperson told Mlada fronta Dnes. Last month high-ranking police officer Alena Plskova said the police needed to track down such mothers in case the baby's parents were drug addicts or alcoholics. Her statements were roundly condemned by baby box operators - they said the loss of anonymity would deter women from using it. The police now say they will only search for mothers when babies show signs of violent abuse.

Civic Democrats continue to lead polls

The Civic Democrats remain the most popular political party ahead of June's elections, suggests a poll just released by the SC&C agency. Almost 30 percent of respondents said they would vote for the party. The Social Democrats remain in second with 23.6 percent support, slightly down on last month. The Communists have 18 percent voter support, followed by the Christian Democrats with 12 and the Green Party with 10.

Some 52 percent of respondents in the same poll said they would not welcome the Communist Party playing a role in the next government.

Sale of "Sauna Belts" banned

The Czech Business Inspectorate has banned the sale of so-called Sauna Belts, TV Nova reported. The TV-advertised products are intended to help users lose weight, but the inspectorate said they could cause burns and start fires.

Extraliga playoffs continue after Slavia win

Slavia Prague have kept their hopes of winning the final series in ice hockey's Extraliga alive, after beating Sparta Prague 3:2 on Sunday. The result narrows Sparta's lead to 3:2 on games. The best of seven series continues at Sparta's arena on Friday.

Weather

It should remain bright with rain in places over the next few days. Temperatures are set to reach up to 21 degrees Celsius by the end of the week.